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Friday, February 6, 2015

52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks - #5 My father, Alan Edouard Samuel

Again this week I have combined the 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks
challenge with Thomas MacEntee’s Genealogy Do-Over. Week 5 of the Do-Over had
us focusing on building a research toolbox and on citing sources. My poor
citing skill was one of the main reasons I decided to participate in the
do-over. I had about 950 people in my “tree” some of whom I simply exported
from other people’s trees. But, most crucial was the fact that I had many, many
facts attached to people and I had no idea where the information came
from. I also had many “holes” where I was missing information.

The theme for Week #5 of 52 Ancestors is “Plowing Through.”
That is exactly how I have been feeling- "plowing through" research related
to my father, adding it to my research log (Week #3 – Research Logs), carefully
tracking my research attempts (Week #4 – Tracking Searches) and meticulously
(hopefully correctly), citing the source of each fact before adding it to my
genealogy software, RootsMagic.

I chose my father for a few reasons. One: The Do-Over had me
start with myself. That was the focus of my last post. Then I moved to my father. Two: I have pretty much
finishing gathering the vital stats for my father. 3: My father actually was a
farmer. Truthfully, more of a farmer-wanna-be! So, here goes:

My father (center, wearing white pants) at the reunion he organized for his 75th birthday in 2007.
His sister, Jessica is to the left of him. 7 of his 9 kids were there.That's me in the turquoise shirt and weird print skirt.

Just the Facts, Ma’am

August 1932
Alan held by his mother, Hortense Kesner Samuel

Alan Edouard Samuel was born on July 24, 1932 at Mary
Immaculate Hospital in Queens, New York. He was the first child of Edgar Samuel
and Hortense Kesner. His childhood was spent in Brooklyn where he attended
Erasmus Hall High School.

Alan attended Hamilton College in NY, earning his BA
in 1953. He married “the girl next door”, Doris Lichtenthal on June 28, 1953.

From 1954-1955, Alan lived in Japan while completing his
service in the Navy. Alan earned the rank of LTJG (Lieutenant, Junior Grade.)
He served in a variety of positions, from working in the mailroom to
pleading cases as a military lawyer. During this time, Alan taught also some
courses in Ancient History at the USAFI (US Armed Forces Institute.)

In
November 1955, Alan was reassigned to the States. He moved to New Rochelle, New
York with Doris and their 9 month-old daughter, Deborah. (That’s me!)

By 1956, Alan had been accepted to Yale University in New
Haven, CT. Alan, Doris and their two girls moved to New Haven while Alan attended school, paid for by a fellowship (daughter Jeanne had been born in June 1956) . Alan received his MA in 1957, shortly before his
third daughter, Katharine was born.

Here's an example of why I need to do the Genealogy Do-Over.
Finding the source of this article is on my To-Do List!

In 1959 Alan earned his PhD from Yale. He taught, first as
an “instructor” from 1959-1963, then as a Professor of Classics from 1963
through 1966.

That same year, Alan and his family relocated to the
suburban town, Hamden, CT. In 1961 his fourth daughter, Elizabeth was born.
Shortly after, the marriage broke down and Alan moved out of the family home.
By 1964, a divorce had been granted.

Alan married his second wife (Name withheld for privacy
reasons) in 1964 and in 1966, he and his wife moved to Toronto, Canada, where
Alan secured a professorship at the University of Toronto. Alan’s fifth
daughter (Name withheld for privacy reasons) was born in 1971.

Alan’s second marriage also dissolved. On February 15, 1975,
Alan married his third wife, Valerie Stevens. Valerie had one child from a
previous marriage, (Name withheld for privacy reasons).

At some point in the early 1970s, Alan and his wife purchased a 50 acre farm in outside of Guelph, Ontario in the village of Campbellsville. Here, Alan spent many happy hours mowing and selling hay, and later growing Christmas trees.The family lived in a
residential section of Toronto
but they also maintianed ownership of the farm,
eventually moving there full time.

This marriage would last for many years. Alan and Valerie
adopted three children, two girls and one boy (Names withheld for privacy
reasons.) Alan continued to teach at the University of Toronto and also began a
publishing company, Edgar Kent. Inc.

Valerie passed away in 2001. Alan remained at the farm,
eventually retiring from his teaching position. He continued to work in the
publishing business, writing scholarly articles and books. He also wrote some
stories related to his childhood. (In 2009 I pulled those stories together into
a self-published book for family, Stories
from My Life.)

In 2007, Alan was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. He
married his fourth wife (Name withheld for privacy reasons) shortly before his
death on August 15, 2008.

So- those are the facts. As you can imagine my father’s life
lends itself to a much more in-depth post. Maybe two. Or ten. A childhood full
of impish stories, four wives, nine children, a well-respected scholar and an
extremely intelligent man (with dubious decision-making abilities) provides a
plethora of stories just begging to be told.

For now, I’ll end this post with two appropriate references
to this week’s theme of “Plowing Through.”

Alan, 1959

The first is a picture of my father digging an “addition” to
the brook that ran behind my childhood home in Hamden.

My mom told me that the
neighbors were pretty upset about it. Dad had decided to dig a brook on our
land, forming a sort of semi-circle from the natural brook that ran behind all
the homes on our side of the street. Apparently, his efforts resulted in a
lowering of the water depth for the entire length of the brook. Oops.

The second reference I found while doing “an exhaustive
search” for Week 3 of the Do-Over. After Dad became ill, he was quite concerned
about the fate of the farm. According to an article posted on the website of
the Ontario Farmland Trust the property is now a protected area, “Made
possible by the dedication and generosity of the late Mr. Alan Samuel and his
wife, the late Valerie Stevens, as well as their children, the easement
protects the property’s unique agricultural and natural features in
perpetuity.”

Photograph of the farm - taken by Alan's daughter, Kristin Samuel-Stevens

Perhaps there will be an appropriate theme in the future
where I can tell more of my father’s story. What might that theme be? Oh – so
many choices….one thing I can say about my dad – he was not a boring man!